I’ve got a soft spot for Pine Knob because I attended so many shows there. Growing up I lived a few towns over so by the time I got to high school it seemed that half of my summer was spent at Pine Knob. Most shows you could get a lawn seat for $20 or less so it was easy to see a lot of shows. You always had to check the calendar to see when OzzFest was coming through town though because the crowd usually tore up the hill and it would be all dirt, or mud if it rained. There was a 2 week span in July of 2001 that was great at Pine Knob. I saw Paul Simon on 7/3 and Phil and Friends on 7/17, with RatDog opening. I saw a few other shows that month in the region, and overall it might have been the best month of shows I ever saw. Of course, nowadays shows are so expensive that I only make it to 2-3 per year, so although I love seeing live music I mostly live vicariously through CDs these days.
I was pleased to see these shows make it to the download series. I had recordings of both nights at Pine Knob long before this came out and they were always fun shows, especially in the post-Brent, Hornsby period. I Need A Miracle got the nod today because it’s been a while since I had a Bobby tune. This one is a solid rocker in my opinion, and the addition of Hornsby to the mix gives it a little something extra.
Very few punches are pulled here and this one flat out rocks. Jerry runs up and down the fretboard like a madman. The crowd is clearly into it as well as the band lets them have their say at the end of the verses. The jam at the end starts with Bobby doing his “Bobby Rock Star” vocal ad lib stuff, but this quickly gives way to a Truckin’-flavored jam that continues to build until Weir changes up his approach. Apparently this is the signal as the band feels their way toward the next song.
